Fawzia Amin Sido, a young Yazidi woman who was kidnapped by ISIS at just 11 years old, has been rescued from Hamas after nearly a decade in captivity, Israeli officials reported Thursday. The 21-year-old was freed earlier this week during a months-long operation led by the United States and has since reunited with her family in Iraq. A heartwarming video of their emotional reunion quickly went viral.
According to David Saranga, director of the digital diplomacy bureau at Israelโs foreign ministry, Fawzia was abducted from her home in Iraq during a horrific campaign by ISIS in 2014, which saw over 5,000 Yazidi people killed and thousands more kidnapped. After being taken by ISIS, she was trafficked to Gaza, where she remained captive for the next ten years.
๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ฉ๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ณ๐, ๐ ๐๐-๐ฒ๐๐๐ซ-๐จ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐ณ๐ข๐๐ข ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐ก๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐ ๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ซ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ก๐๐ซโฆ https://t.co/zDDFgjrNAv pic.twitter.com/5e2zkqgvcI
โ Israel ืืฉืจืื (@Israel) October 3, 2024
โFawzia, a Yazidi girl kidnapped by ISIS from Iraq and brought to Gaza at just 11 years old, has finally been rescued by the Israeli security forces,โ Saranga shared on X (formerly Twitter). โFor years, she was held captive by a Palestinian Hamas-ISIS member. She has now been reunited with her family.โ
Though Fawzia was found in good physical condition, Iraqi officials noted that she is traumatized by her lengthy ordeal. The rescue operation, which spanned over four months, faced several setbacks due to the challenging security situation created by Israelโs military offensive in Gaza.
Silwan Sinjaree, chief of staff for Iraq’s foreign minister, confirmed the complexities involved in the rescue attempts. โWe had several attempts that failed due to the difficult security situation,โ he explained, underscoring the precarious nature of the operation.
Fawziaโs story serves as a poignant reminder of the brutal reality faced by Yazidi children who have been forcibly taken from their families. Her experiences reflect the ongoing plight of many individuals from minority communities in conflict zones, particularly those affected by the actions of extremist groups like ISIS.
As the world watches her journey unfold, Fawziaโs rescue brings hope and highlights the resilience of those who survive unimaginable circumstances.
